Patricia Page of East Greenwich is Rhode Island’s Teacher of the Year

Thursday

Sep 12, 2013 at 9:52 PM

EAST GREEWICH — An East Greenwich high school teacher with an unorthodox path to the classroom has been named Rhode Island Teacher of the Year. Not only that, she received a Smart car (no pun intended)...

Linda Borg Journal Staff Writer @lborgprojocom

EAST GREEWICH — An East Greenwich high school teacher with an unorthodox path to the classroom has been named Rhode Island Teacher of the Year.

Not only that, she received a Smart car (no pun intended) for her travels as Rhode Island’s education ambassador. The car, cherry red with the phrase “Teacher of the Year” emblazoned on the door, was provided by Inskip’s Warwick Auto Mall.

The award came as a total surprise to Patricia M. Page, who walked into a gymnasium overflowing with students, teachers and officials thinking that the school was getting notice for its teacher-recognition program.

But it was the car, the same type driven by state Education Commissioner Deborah A. Gist, that really put things over the top:

“This is unbelievable,” Page said as she slipped behind the wheel. “The technology, the sustainability — what a perfect fit.”

Page has tapped into her private-sector experience, including a job with the Economic Development Corporation, to help students make connections between the real world and the classroom.

During her three years at East Greenwich High, where she teaches business and computer education, Page’s students were finalists in the Rhode Island Life Smarts competition and Federal Reserve Cup Challenge. She also developed the school’s senior project program.

But it’s Page’s 180-degree shift in careers that is the most striking part of her personal story. Page, who has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Bryant University, began her career in corporate communications. Later, she landed a job as director of human relations for the EDC.

At that point, Page was serving on several boards whose mission was to improve adult literacy. At the opening of Roger Williams University’s Providence campus, Page bumped into an associate dean of education from the university.

Page said she was considering going back to college to get a master’s degree in education but worried it would take too long. The dean urged her to take his class.

“If you don’t like it, I’ll give you a refund,” he told her.

Page took the class, loved it and embarked on a four-year journey to earn a master’s degree in teaching. While taking night classes at Roger Williams, she worked full-time and raised two boys, one of whom was born during that period.

Page, who is 48 and lives in East Greenwich, has been in the classroom ever since, including two years as a third-grade teacher at the Meadowbrook Farms Elementary School, also in East Greenwich.

During Thursday’s celebration, students and teachers praised her ability to bridge the world of business and academia.

“One of her goals is to break down the wall between our schools and the world of business, which sure helps prepare her students for success in challenging careers,” said Governor Chafee, who attended Thursday’s event.

“Whether I need advice, a shoulder to cry on or a congratulatory hug, she is the first person I seek out,” said Ella Myette, a high school senior. “Because of that, she has become my rock. I joke with friends that Mrs. Page is like my mom at school, but really it’s true.”

Page, she said, is so much more than a great teacher:

“She is my hope for the future. If I, or any of us, could grow up to be even half as inspiring, motivating or significant as Mrs. Page, I think that would be pretty extraordinary.”

Gist praised Page for her ability to prepare students for the workplace. She mentioned her “elevator speech,” in which students are asked to pitch an idea to an audience in a limited amount of time.

As one student wrote, “The tools you have given me will be the foundation for the success that I will create for myself in life.”

Page will now compete for national Teacher of the Year, which was won by Kathleen Mellor of North Kingstown in 2004.

Page will attend a national meeting with fellow state winners, and she will speak on behalf of her profession at events across the state. Gist, meanwhile, will meet with Page throughout the year and will draw on her expertise to help shape policy and improve teaching.

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